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Monday, February 26, 2007

ADHD drug makers to warn of side effects ...WASHINGTON - Drugs prescribed to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder will include guides to alert patients and parents of the risks of mental and heart problems, including sudden death.READ ARTICLE

Prescription drug deaths skyrocket 68 percent over five years as Americans swallow more pills...(NewsTarget) Poisoning from prescription drugs has risen to become the second-largest cause of unintentional deaths in the United States, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, researchers found that deaths from prescription drugs rose from 4.4 per 100,000 people in 1999 to 7.1 per 100,000 in 2004.READ ARTICLE

Magnesium boosts bone health in teenage girls...(NewsTarget) Girls who take magnesium supplements as adolescents may be giving themselves stronger bones for the future. Researchers found the girls who were given the magnesium had significant increases in body mineral content in some parts of the body, meaning stronger bones. An "increased accrual" of body mineral content in the hips was complemented with a slightly increased accrual of body mineral content in the spine.READ ARTICLESome cocoa improves blood flow in the brain...Ingredient in chocolate could help fight off dementia, research suggests.READ ARTICLE

Vitamin D Backed For Cancer Prevention In Two New Studies...Science Daily — Two new vitamin D studies using a sophisticated form of analysis called meta-analysis, in which data from multiple reports is combined, have revealed new prescriptions for possibly preventing up to half of the cases of breast cancer and two-thirds of the cases of colorectal cancer in the United States. The work was conducted by a core team of cancer prevention specialists at the Moores Cancer Center at University of California, San Diego (UCSD), and colleagues from both coasts.READ ARTICLE

Cholesterol and Heart Disease--A Phony Issue...As a result of some of this misinformation, which was purposefully planted by the leadership of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) in 1984, many hundreds of thousands of people are treated with expensive medications to prevent the development of a non-existent illness. If the medications were only expensive and not life threatening, their use could no doubt be shrugged off as a harmless snake oil pharmaceutical scam; but, in fact, these are thoroughly dangerous medications for both physical and emotional reasons—for physical reasons because their use can lead to serious untreatable diseases such as liver cancer, and for emotional reasons because their use perpetuates the myth that cholesterol is dangerous and evil.READ ARTICLE

Scientists discover the brain has ability to repair itself...NewsTarget) Neuroscientists at Auckland (N.Z.) University and the Carlsson Institute for Neuroscience in Sweden have found a cell pathway providing new evidence that the brain may be able to repair itself, according to the results of an eight-year study. The research may yield new information for fighting Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's and preventing strokes.READ ARTICLE

Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, February 23, 2007...

NO DEATHS FROM VITAMINS: Poison Control Statistics Prove Supplements’ Safety.(OMNS Feb 23, 2007) There was not even one death caused by vitamins in 2005, according to the most recent statistics available from the US National Poisoning and Exposure Database. The 129-page annual report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers published in the journal Clinical Toxicology (1) shows zero deaths from multiple vitamins; zero deaths from any of the B vitamins; zero deaths from vitamins A, C, D, or E; and zero deaths from any other vitamin. Over half of the U.S. population takes daily vitamin supplements. Even if each of those people took only one single tablet per day, that makes 145,000,000 individual doses per day, for a total of over 53 billion doses annually. Since many persons take additional vitamins, the numbers are considerably higher, and the safety of vitamins all the more remarkable.

Christopher Wiechert, C.N.C.

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

Friday, February 23, 2007

Vitamin D supplements reduce falls in older adults...A report published in the February, 2007 issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society concluded that supplementing with vitamin D can help prevent nursing home falls in older men and women. Falls occur in approximately half of the residents of nursing homes each year, and render the patients more susceptible to further injury.Kerry Broe and Douglas Kiel of the Institute for Aging Research at Hebrew SeniorLife in Boston and colleagues at Boston Medical Center and Harvard analyzed data from a randomized, controlled clinical trial of 124 nursing home residents with an average age of 89. Participants received 200, 400, 600, or 800 international units (IU) vitamin D per day or placebo for five months.At the study’s conclusion, 44 percent of the patients in the placebo group had fallen, compared with 20 percent of the group that received 800 IU vitamin D. The adjusted-incidence rate ratio of falls of the subjects in this group was 72 percent lower than that of the placebo group. Lower doses of vitamin D than 800 IU were not associated with any significant effects compared to placebo.Over half of the subjects who were using a multivitamin supplement at the beginning of the study had suboptimal serum vitamin D levels of less than 20 nanograms per milliliter. When total vitamin D supplement intake was calculated to include multinutrient supplements, the group whose intake was in the lowest one-fifth of the participants had the greatest number of fallers, while the top fifth had the least.“Past studies have shown that vitamin D could help prevent falls in seniors, and may be due to a possible strengthening effect the vitamin has on the musculoskeletal system,” the authors noted. “Until now, we didn’t know what dosage amount would be effective.”They add that vitamin D supplementation should be considered in combination with other methods to help reduce falling, and recommend further research.“Lowering the risk of falls with a simple vitamin D supplement could improve the quality of life for nursing home residents by reducing the incidence of falls," they conclude.Life Extension Foundation

The Battle of the BulgeDid you ever wonder why some people can eat all they want and not get fat, while others are constantly battling extra pounds? The answer may have to do with vitamin D and calcium status. Sunlight, UV-B, and vitamin D normalize food intake and normalize blood sugar. Weight normalization is associated with higher levels of vitamin D and adequate calcium.61 Obesity is associated with vitamin-D deficiency.62-64 In fact, obese persons have impaired production of UV-B-stimulated D and impaired absorption of food source and supplemental D.65When the diet lacks calcium, whether from D or calcium deficiency, there is an increase in fatty acid synthase, an enzyme that converts calories into fat. Higher levels of calcium with adequate vitamin D inhibit fatty acid synthase while diets low in calcium increase fatty acid synthase by as much as five-fold. In one study, genetically obese rats lost 60 percent of their body fat in six weeks on a diet that had moderate calorie reduction but was high in calcium. All rats supplemented with calcium showed increased body temperature indicating a shift from calorie storage to calorie burning (thermogenesis).61

More on vitamin D...During the last ten years, researchers have made a number of exciting discoveries about vitamin D. They have ascertained, for example, that vitamin D is an antioxidant that is a more effective antioxidant than vitamin E in reducing lipid peroxidation and increasing enzymes that protect against oxidation.19;20Vitamin D deficiency decreases biosynthesis and release of insulin.21 Glucose intolerance has been inversely associated with the concentration of vitamin D in the blood. Thus, vitamin D may protect against both Type I and Type II diabetes.22The risk of senile cataract is reduced in persons with optimal levels of D and carotenoids.23PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) has been corrected by supplementation of D and calcium.24Vitamin D plays a role in regulation of both the "infectious" immune system and the "inflammatory" immune system.25Low vitamin D is associated with several autoimmune diseases including multiple sclerosis, Sjogren's Syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, thyroiditis and Crohn's disease.26;27Osteoporosis is strongly associated with low vitamin D. Postmenopausal women with osteoporosis respond favorably (and rapidly) to higher levels of D plus calcium and magnesium.28D deficiency has been mistaken for fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue or peripheral neuropathy.1;28-30Infertility is associated with low vitamin D.31 Vitamin D supports production of estrogen in men and women.32 PMS has been completely reversed by addition of calcium, magnesium and vitamin D.33 Menstrual migraine is associated with low levels of vitamin D and calcium.81Breast, prostate, skin and colon cancer have a strong association with low levels of D and lack of sunlight.34-38Activated vitamin D in the adrenal gland regulates tyrosine hydroxylase, the rate limiting enzyme necessary for the production of dopamine, epinephrine and norepinephrine. Low D may contribute to chronic fatigue and depression.39Seasonal Affective Disorder has been treated successfully with vitamin D. In a recent study covering 30 days of treatment comparing vitamin D supplementation with two-hour daily use of light boxes, depression completely resolved in the D group but not in the light box group.40High stress may increase the need for vitamin D or UV-B sunlight and calcium.41People with Parkinsons and Alzheimers have been found to have lower levels of vitamin D.42;43Low levels of D, and perhaps calcium, in a pregnant mother and later in the child may be the contributing cause of "crooked teeth" and myopia. When these conditions are found in succeeding generations it means the genetics require higher levels of one or both nutrients to optimize health.44-47Behavior and learning disorders respond well to D and/or calcium combined with an adequate diet and trace minerals.48;49Weston Price Foundation

Christopher Wiechert, C.N.C.

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

More than 37% of U.S. households regularly turn to alternative treatments for everything from headaches to diabetes, according to a survey conducted by Thomson Medstat, Ann Arbor, MI, a business of The Thomson Corporation. Thomson Medstat's 2006 consumer healthcare survey asked 23,000 adults about their use of alternative medicine and found that:* 37.2% of U.S. households use some form of alternative medicine. The most common reason was to improve general wellness.* Alternative medicine use is most prevalent among those with annual incomes exceeding $100,000 and those with post-graduate college degrees.* 64.1% of respondents said their physicians were aware of their use of alternative medicine.* 41.9% said at least some of the costs of their alternative treatments were covered by insurance.* Herbal supplements and massage/chiropractic care were the most commonly used alternative care, followed by mind/body practices, energy therapies and naturopathy.

The study found that affluent, highly educated Americans are driving the growth of the alternative market. Nearly half (49.9%) of households earning more than $100,000 per year sought alternative treatments in the past 12 months. Likewise, 49.6% of those with post-graduate degrees used alternative medicine. At the lower end of the income/education scale, utilization dropped to 30% in households earning $15,000-$24,999 per year and to 18.1% among those without a high school diploma. Alternative medicines are broadly defined as therapeutic or preventive healthcare practices such as homeopathy, naturopathy, chiropractic and herbal medicine.

Christopher Wiechert, C.N.C.

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

Monday, February 19, 2007

Common Drugs With Dangerous Side Effects And Their Natural Alternatives - 16 Top-Selling Prescription Drugs...Many FDA-approved drugs are ineffective, unnecessary, and unsafe. They come with a slew of uncomfortable and dangerous side effects, including digestive upsets and headaches, liver and kidney impairment, and dependency. In some cases, they actually cause the very symptoms they are supposed to cure. Once you’re on one drug, you need others drugs to fix the side effects of the first one, putting you on what I call the prescription drug treadmill, draining your pockets and severely compromising your quality of life. You may need help as you age, but not that kind of help.READ ARTICLE

Eating fish during pregnancy boosts babies' communication, social skills...A new study from the US National Institutes of Health and Bristol University that questioned 11,875 pregnant women on their dietary habits found that eating more fish during pregnancy resulted in significant, measurable benefits to the communication skills and social standing of their children seven years later.READ ARTICLE

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Researchers discover moderate sunlight exposure helps prevent skin cancer...NewsTarget) To the surprise of scientists, while exposure to the sun's UV rays is the main cause of skin cancer, a recent study says some sunlight also can help prevent it. The idea of sunlight helping prevent skin cancer may sound like a paradox, but the key is exposure in moderation, immunology scientists at Stanford University found.READ ARTICLE

More kids having weight-loss surgery ...NEW YORK - As the popularity of stomach surgery has skyrocketed among obese adults, a growing number of doctors are asking, "Why not children, too?"READ ARTICLE

Selenium plus multivitamins may slash prostate cancer risk...2/5/2007 - Increased selenium intake in combination with a daily multivitamin may reduce the risk of prostate cancer by about 40 per cent, suggests new research.READ ARTICLE

COMMENT: The idea that doctors would start recommending children have stomach surgery discusses me. Parents have to take charge of their kids health and teach them the right things to eat. It's not easy but, surgery?... Please.... Life requires discipline sometimes, try changing the whole family over toThe Ideal Diet.

Christopher Wiechert, C.N.C.

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

Meta-analyses published online on February 6, 2007 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, and in the Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology conclude that having higher blood levels of vitamin D could prevent as many as two-thirds of the cases of colorectal cancer and half of the cases of breast cancer in the United States.The colorectal cancer analysis reviewed data from five studies that examined the association between blood levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D and colorectal cancer risk. Blood collected from a total of 1,448 healthy participants was tested for vitamin D and the subjects were followed for up to 25 years during which cases of colorectal cancer were recorded.Concerning the findings, coauthor Edward D. Gorham, PhD, of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) reported, "Through this meta-analysis we found that raising the serum level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D to 34 nanograms per milliliter would reduce the incidence rates of colorectal cancer by half. We project a two-thirds reduction in incidence with serum levels of 46 nanograms per milliliter, which corresponds to a daily intake of 2,000 IU of vitamin D3. This would be best achieved with a combination of diet, supplements and 10 to 15 minutes per day in the sun."The review included data from the Women's Health Initiative which did not find a protective effect for low dose vitamin D on seven year colorectal cancer risk, however, the researchers observed that the meta-analysis indicates that a higher dose may reduce the disease’s incidence. "Meta-analysis is an important tool for revealing trends that may not be apparent in a single study," coauthor Sharif B. Mohr, MPH noted. "Pooling of independent but similar studies increases precision, and therefore the confidence level of the findings."The breast cancer meta-analysis included data from the Harvard Nurses Health Study and the St. George's Hospital Study, which involved a total of 1,760 women whose vitamin D levels ranged from less than 13 nanograms per liter to approximately 52 nanograms per milliliter."The data were very clear, showing that individuals in the group with the lowest blood levels had the highest rates of breast cancer, and the breast cancer rates dropped as the blood levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D increased," first author Cedric F. Garland, DrPH, of UCSD stated. "The serum level associated with a 50 percent reduction in risk could be maintained by taking 2,000 international units of vitamin D3 daily plus, when the weather permits, spending 10 to 15 minutes a day in the sun."It was noted, however, that for some individuals, any amount of sun exposure is inadvisable.Health Concern

Breast cancerVitamin A and vitamin D3 inhibit breast cancer cell division and can induce cancer cells to differentiate into mature, noncancerous cells. Vitamin D3 works synergistically with tamoxifen (and melatonin) to inhibit breast cancer cell proliferation.Daily doses of vitamin A, 350,000 to 500,000 IU were given to 100 patients with metastatic breast carcinoma treated by chemotherapy. A significant increase in the complete response was observed; however, response rates, duration of response and projected survival were only significantly increased in postmenopausal women with breast cancer (Israel et al. 1985).Breast cancer patients may take between 4000 to 6000 IU of vitamin D3 every day. Water-soluble vitamin A can be taken in doses of 100,000-300,000 IU every day. Monthly blood tests are needed to make sure toxicity does not occur in response to these high daily doses of vitamin A and vitamin D3. After 4-6 months, the doses of vitamin D3 and vitamin A can be reduced.Monthly blood tests should include complete blood chemistry, with tests for liver function and serum calcium levels, prolactin, parathyroid hormone, and the tumor marker CA 27.29 (or CA 15.3). Additional blood tests to consider are the CEA and GGTP tests. These tests monitor the progress of therapies used and also detect toxicity from high doses of vitamin A and vitamin D3. The patient should insist on obtaining a copy of their blood workups every month.http://www.lef.org/protocols/prtcl-022.shtml

Comment: This is just a few examples of what Orthomolecular Medicine is all about. Orthomolecular medicine describes the practice of preventing disease by providing the body with optimal amounts of substances which are natural to the body.

Christopher Wiechert, C.N.C.

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

Saturday, February 03, 2007

BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS: A GLOBAL CRISIS ...While there is no doubt an awareness among the general public that diabetes is very bad news, just how bad it is may not be fully appreciated, especially to the extent that it prompts serious and sustained attempts to avoid Type 2 disease through lifestyle changes. A study just published in The Lancet spells out the seriousness of the problem. The investigators examined the connection between elevated blood sugar levels and mortality from heart disease and stroke on a worldwide basis. They found that higher than optimum blood sugar levels were responsible worldwide for 21% of deaths from ischemic (directly due to blood clots) heart disease and for 13% of deaths from stroke, which when added to the deaths from diabetes itself, puts this condition in the top five causes of mortality, accounting for over 3 million deaths per year. The observed positive association between blood glucose and cardiovascular risk extends well below the usual glucose levels used for identifying diabetes or even prediabetic disorders. Prevention therefore involves interventions aimed at shifting the distribution of blood glucose concentrations downward for the entire population. The authors are unclear as to the how this is to be accomplished worldwide, given the diversity of populations, cultures and diets. However, non-pharmaceutical approaches would seem to be restricted to interventions associated with diet, energy intake, avoidance of obesity or even being overweight, and exercise and perhaps some supplements. In an editorial, Avendano and Mackenbach point out that this study shows that mortality attributable to higher than optimum blood glucose levels is about three times greater than that attributable to diabetes as such and suggest that the effect of elevated blood glucose levels has been seriously underestimated.Danaei, G. et al. Global and Regional Mortality form Ischaemic Heart Disease and Stroke Attributable to Higher-Than-Optimum Blood Glucose Concentration:Comparative Risk Assessment. Lancet, 2006, Vol. 368,Nov. 11, pp. 1651-9/ Avendano, M and J. P. Mackenbach. Blood GlucoseLevels: Facing a Global Crisis. Lancet, 2006, Vol. 368, Nov. 11, pp. 1631-2.

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Most tap water polluted by dirty municipal infrastructure...NewsTarget) As the United States becomes a nation of 300 million, the country’s older cities face the reality of overpopulation, crumbling infrastructures, and the health concerns raised by both, especially those related to the availability of fresh water.READ ARTICLE HERE

eSpring® Water Purifier features UV light to destroy microorganisms and a patented carbon-block filter to reduce more than 140 potential health-effect contaminants . The eSpring system has earned the Water Quality Association's Gold Seal for superior consumer water treatment products.

PREVENTING SUDDEN DEATH FROM CORONARY HEART DISEASE WITH OMEGA-3 FATTY ACID...INTERNATIONAL HEALTH NEWS:For some, sudden death is the first indication of the presence of coronary heart disease and even when the existence of this disease is recognized, sudden death is not an uncommon event. Currently, prevention of sudden death focuses on three interventions: implantable defibrillators, automated external defibrillators placed in public places and the consumption of omega-3 fatty acids. This study compares the defibrillator approach with an intervention aimed at increasing blood levels of these fatty acids. The justification in part was based on a meta-analysis that found that omega-3 fatty acids from fish and fish oil (EPA and DHA) reduced all-cause mortality and various outcomes from cardiovascular disease such as sudden death, death from cardiac disease, and nonfatal myocardial infarction (heart attack). The study found that raising omega-3 levels would have about 8 times the impact of distributing external defibrillators and twice the impact of implanting such devices. Furthermore, the authors point out that there would also be benefits from raising omega-3 levels in individuals who do not qualify for or had not been identified as candidates for implantable devices. This study, which was based on data from the literature, used omega-3 parameters taken from two studies, one of which found a 62% decrease in risk of cardiac arrest for healthy individuals taking omega-3 supplements, and one which found a 45% decrease in risk of cardiac arrest attributable to omega-3 supplements for patients with a prior heart attack. This latter study used 840 mg/day of easily absorbable EPA + DHA.Kottke,T.E. et al. Preventing Sudden Death with n-3 (Omega-3) Fatty Acids and Defibrillators. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2006, Vol. 31, No. 4, pp. 316-23.

How to Mend A Broken Heart...Dr Linus Pauling's Unified Theory of Cardiovascular Disease ...Over ten years ago, the two-time Nobel prize Laureate, Dr Linus Pauling and his associate Dr Matthias Rath, advocated and published a definitive thesis on the root cause, treatment, and actual cure for all forms of cardiovascular disease (CVD), including congestive heart failure, heart disease, and stroke. Today, cardiovascular related health problems together comprise fully one half of all causes of death in the US. Pauling and Rath's brilliant analysis of CVD is absolutely compelling and amply supported by numerous epidemiological and clinical studies. His unified theory of CVD constitutes one of the greatest breakthroughs in modern science, and yet has been almost completely ignored by the mainstream medical establishment, and received almost no press.READ THE ARTICLE

Christopher Wiechert, C.N.C.

Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition. If you have any concerns about your own health, you should always consult with a healthcare professional. If you decide to use this information on your own, it's your constitutional right, but I assume no responsibility.

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Christopher Wiechert,CNC is a consultant in the field of Ortho-Molecular, Nutrigenomic, Regenerative and Anti-Aging Nutrition, and the owner of Wiechert Enterprises, a Consulting and Research Development Company serving the US, Canada and The World.
He has over 40 years of experience.
OFFICE: 541-447-4580...
Christopher Wiechert's Healthblogger is for educational or informational purposes only, and is not intended to diagnose or provide treatment for any condition.